Ron's Decision
by leviathan15
Summary: Set after The Trio's 7th year. Ron is ready to go to a Quiddich Academy, but he suddenly gets a frantic Owl that Harry is in the hospital. While visiting him, Ron meets up with a certain someone! OoTP spoilers. R&R!
1. 1: Ron packs for school

Ron's Decision  
  
Chapter 1  
  
It was morning. The sun cast a faint shimmer of light over the English countryside as it languidly rose above the horizon. The birds began to chirp their welcome to the day, starting as a single voice, then gradually rising to a crescendo of many twitters as the sky exploded into a palette of glowing oranges, pinks, and purples.  
  
In one tall, crooked house, an island in the rolling green meadows of the country, a nineteen year old boy was dreamily looking out his bedroom window, a smile playing at his lips. He was tall and gangly, and covered with freckles. His maroon pajamas were too small, stopping several inches above his ankle. But the most noticeable feature about him was his flaming red hair, which was a common trait in his family.  
Today, Ron Weasley's mind was on something other than his looks. Today was the first day since leaving school that he felt truly happy, like his soul was going to break free and soar among the clouds. For today was the day when he would go off to the best Quiddich school in the world for wizards his age. It was his lifelong dream to play Keeper for an international Quiddich team, not just inter-house games at his old school, Hogwarts. As Ron leaned on his window sill, his hand resting in one hand, he thought about what all his friends were doing. After his 7th year at Hogwarts, many of his friends had gone their separate ways, but he had still managed to keep in touch with all of them, especially his best friend, Harry.  
  
Harry had become an Auror, no surprise, and was one of the best Aurors of his generation. Having studied his hardest in his seventh year to pass all his required N.E.W.T.'s, he had later trained at the Ministry of Magic after graduation, and was now traveling all over the world, looking for Voldemort. The last Ron had heard of him (which was several months ago), Harry was in Germany, where Voldemort had last been seen by the local magic community.  
Seamus and Dean, Ron's other good friends, now worked at the Ministry of Magic with Ron's father in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office. They were still avid fans of the Irish Quiddich team, and Ron often invited them over to his house for a quick game. Neville, being interested in Herbology and medicine, had become one of the top Healers at St. Mungo's Hospital. This career move surprised everyone, since Neville was never very good at his studies. As Ron thought about his friends, he thought about the fact that he could actually tell them stories of his Quiddich school, instead of only listening to theirs about their jobs. Shifting positions, he realized he was clutching a crumpled piece of paper. Opening it, he read:  
  
This document hereby grants  
Ronald Christian Weasley  
a full scholarship to the  
Escobar Quiddich Academy,  
due to his  
outstanding Quiddich performances  
at the  
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
  
6/24/07 Proffesor Jose Etwidje Cornelius Fudge  
Date Headmaster of Minister of Magic  
Escobar Quiddich Academy  
  
Ron's whole family had been so proud of him for winning the scholarship. His mother had cried hysterically (out of happiness, of course) while squeezing him so hard, and had immediately gone out to buy him a Firebolt. Bill and Charlie gave Ron his own set of Quiddich balls. Percy gave Ron a new quill. Fred and George gave him a broom maintenance set. Ginny and Mr. Weasley presented Ron with a giant poster they had made of him flying around in a Chudley Cannons uniform. Ginny drew it, being the best artist in her year, and Mr. Weasley bewitched it so that it would move around, as all wizard pictures were prone to do. Ron had rolled it up and put it in his trunk, to put in his dormitory at school.  
  
Suddenly, Ron was interrupted in his thoughts by a faint knock on his door, which woke up Pigwidgeon, his owl. "Ron, dear," he heard a voice call softly. "Ron, are you awake?" It was his mother, Mrs. Weasley. "Yes, coming, be right down," said Ron. "Don't come in." "All right. Get dressed, please, and bring your trunk downstairs when you come down for breakfast," said Mrs. Weasley. "Ron, we are so proud of you! I am going to miss you so much!" Her voice became choked up at the end, and Ron heard faint sniffles coming from behind his closed door. Ron rolled his eyes. His mother had always gotten emotional these past few days at the mention of him going away from home. It reminds me of how she was the few weeks before I left the house for my first year at Hogwarts, he thought. I was a little sad, too. But then I met Harry and Hermione. Ron interrupted his thoughts. He didn't want to think about Hermione. Ron quickly got dressed, went over to the open trunk at the foot of his bed, and gently put in his beloved Firebolt, which had been leaning against the foot of his bed. He had wrapped it in a blanket after putting several Unbreakable Charms on it. Fred and George had laughed at him, but it was Ron's most precious possession and he didn't want to take a risk of it getting cracked, broken or even the least bit scratched. Looking around his room, which he wouldn't be seeing until the next summer, or if he was lucky, the holidays, Ron threw in a few last minute items and his rolled-up posters of the Chudley Cannons. He also gave Pig (who had been flying madly around his cage ever since Mrs. Weasley knocked on the door) fresh water and an Owl Treat to shut him up. Pig hooted in reply and began gnawing on the Owl Treat. "Wingardium Leviosa," Ron said while pointing his wand at his now closed trunk. It rose into the air and followed Ron as he opened his bedroom door, Pig's cage in his hand. He glanced at his room one last time, then gently closed the door.  
  
Chapter 2 


	2. Oh No!

(A/N: Hello again! The second chapter is up! I promise the story will be more interesting from now on! Also, if you would like me to send you an email update of when the story is updated, please send me a review and include your email. Thanks!)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, or the setting. They belong to the great J.K Rowling!  
  
Chapter 2:  
  
The delicious smell of bacon floated up the stairs as Ron bounded down, his trunk floating in midair behind him. "Good morning, mum," he said to his mother, a portly red-haired woman standing at the sink.  
  
"Good morning, dear! Today's the big day! Are you excited? I made kippers, toast, and bacon, your favorite!" she said while waving her wand at a pile of dirty dishes so they would clean themselves. Mrs. Weasley walked over to Ron and practically pushed him into a chair.  
  
"Sit down and eat up! You said tryouts were today, and I don't want you feeling weak and malnourished," she said while putting a plate piled high with kippers, toast and bacon. Ron, never one to refuse food when offered, remembered how hungry he was and began to eat.  
  
A great noise came from the stairwell and Ginny appeared, lugging her trunk behind her. She was starting her seventh year, and was going to Apparate to the train station after breakfast. Ginny had grown taller that summer, and she was now very pretty and as a result spent hours obsessing over her looks. But now, she wore an expression of annoyment.  
  
"Mum!! Why does Ron get to take Pig to his stupid school with him?? Why can't I take him to Hogwarts?? Ron never writes letters to you and dad anyways, he's always got LOADS of more exciting things to do with his friends than write letters-"  
  
"Now Ginny, you know that it is Ron's owl, not yours, and that gives him the right to do whatever he wants with it. And why did you drag your trunk downstairs? You could have levitated it, dear! Now there are scuff marks all over the floor!" Mrs. Weasley, grumbling, went into another room to get a bottle of Mrs. Skowers All Purpose Magical Mess Remover, as Ginny sat down at the table in a huff.  
  
"Morning," Ron mumbled through a mouthful of toast.  
  
Ginny said nothing, just shot him a dirty look and went to get some breakfast from the stove. Ron just shrugged his shoulders and kept eating.  
  
After a few minutes silence, Ginny spoke. "Ron, how was your seventh year? Was it vastly different from all of your other years? I'm really nervous about everything, and that we'll have to do our final N.E.W.T.'s and all."  
  
"Obsessing over grades, you sound like Her-" Ron stopped himself and scowled. "Ron, what exactly happened between you and Hermione? You two used to be the best of friends, but now-" Ginny trailed off, seeing how Ron's ears had started to turn red.  
  
"NOTHING!!" yelled Ron. He had tried to forget everything that had happened that moment in his seventh year, when Hermione had- He shook his head. He did NOT want to spoil his day, it being so early, and as a distraction, he started going over all the Keeper maneuvers he had read about in his book, The "Kwalities" of Keepers, in his head.  
  
Ginny, however, was not thrown off. She pressed on, saying, "Is it true that-"  
  
"NO!!!!" bellowed Ron. He jumped up from the table as Ginny covered her ears, knowing what was about to happen next. "Just shut up and leave me alone!!! I'm starting to feel sorry that you are my sister, always asking me questions about this and that, when it's really NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!!!"  
  
Ron suddenly stopped, since he had run out of breath, and also for the fact that Ginny looked like she was going to cry. He walked around the table and gave her a hug. "Ginny, I'm sorry. It wasn't your fault, I'm just very touchy on the subject when people ask me what really did happen between me and He.her," he said softly. Ginny nodded and hugged him back.  
  
At that moment there was a loud THUD against the window frame. Ron and Ginny looked at each other, wearing puzzled looks, when Mrs. Weasley bustled in, wearing gardening gloves and holding Errol with a scroll tied to his foot.  
  
"Poor Errol, I'm starting to think we should leave this window open so he doesn't keep running into it," she said. Ginny went over and took Errol as her mother untied the scroll to his foot.  
  
"I hope Errol's okay," she said softly to her brother. "He's probably just out cold again."  
  
"Yeah, I hope we don't have to get a new-" Ron stopped, glancing suddenly at his mother. Her face had gone white and her eyes were widened in terror.  
  
Ron rushed over to her side and helped her sit in a chair. "Mum, what's wrong?" he said. He had never seen his mother like this before, only the time when his dad had gotten attacked by a snake while doing work for the Order.  
  
Ginny took the scroll from her mother's shaking hands and read it. "Ron." Ginny's voice faltered and her eyes, too, widened in terror.  
  
"What is it?? Tell me!!! Is it dad??" Ron practically shouted. It was then when he noticed that the scroll was pale green, meaning it had come from St. Mungo's.  
  
"Harry's in the hospital, Ron. He's in a coma."  
  
(Sorry to leave you at a cliffhanger, but I couldn't resist! I'll post again soon!) 


End file.
